Gophers land 2 big football recruits — literally

The University of Minnesota Gophers football team received a pair of oral commitments from two enormous Florida linemen over the weekend.

Curtis Dunlap Jr. and Daniel Faalele, teammates at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., announced their pledges to Minnesota’s 2018 class during their official visits to campus Saturday.

With the additions, Gophers coach P.J. Fleck’s first full recruiting class improved to 26th in the nation and sixth in the Big Ten Conference, based on 247sports.com’s composite ranking. Dunlap jumps into the No. 1-rated player in the Gophers’ class, with Faalele at No. 3, according to the recruiting site.

Dunlap, who’s listed at 6-foot-4, 368-pound guard, is a four-star recruit who decommitted from the Florida Gators on Tuesday. The Jacksonville, Fla., native was offered a scholarship from Minnesota on Nov. 10 and had other offers from Florida State, LSU, Michigan, USC, Oklahoma and Georgia, and more.

Faalele, who’s even bigger at 6-8 and 400 pound, is a three-star recruit and is listed as an offensive tackle. The Melbourne, Australia, native was offered by Minnesota in March when he visited the Gophers during spring practices and had other offers from Alabama, Auburn, Florida State, LSU, Michigan and more.